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The Fourth Week: Another ViewAt the conclusion of the Fourth Week ofthe Spiritual Exercises I offer retreatants aprayer exercise that St. Ignatius titled “TheContemplation to Attain Love.” This exercise “resumesthe principal themes of the four weeks of the SpiritualExercises into a synthesis by which a person movesgradually to God as he is and to whom he surrendershimself in all things.”1 As explained by Howard Gray,SJ, the retreatant praying the Contemplation is “choosingconsciously at the end of this retreat experience that ‘I willbe a lover by knowing how I am loved.’”2 I share with youhere the story of how one retreatant chose to be a lover byknowing she was loved.I first met her at Manresa and came to know her whenshe participated in a program I helped to facilitate called“Encountering Jesus Heart to Heart: Praying with St.Ignatius.” Some time later she came to see me and askedme to be her spiritual director. I explained that I’d beprivileged to do so but that she might wish to interviewadditional spiritual directors before choosing one. Shesaid, “No, you’re the one.” She told me she felt “acceptedas she was” by me. And so I said “yes,” and we began ourjourney together.Between our first and second meetings she was diagnosedwith a form of cancer that came with a prognosis of threeto five years. Two months after sharing her terrifyingnews, she decided to begin the Spiritual Exercises. Andso in the midst of tackling her cancer through research,changing her diet and receiving chemo treatments shespent an hour each day in prayer and met with me eachweek.During the nine months of praying the Spiritual Exercisesshe came to embrace God’s acceptance of her “as I am!”and she desired to accept herself as she experienced Godaccepting her and loving her. She came to know Jesusand to feel His tender touch when she met Him in prayer.And she felt herself prompted, seemingly against her owninclinations, to reach out to others. Her involvement atGilda’s Club3 was a fruit of this prompting.I have often heard it said, and it is my own livedexperience, that although the Spiritual Exercises havea structure with a beginning and an end, a retreatantdoesn’t “complete” them but rather continues to live theFourth Week through his or her daily choices. This wasmy retreatant’s experience. She continued in spiritualdirection and about one year after praying with “TheContemplation to Attain Love” she was once againpraying with this same exercise. In “The Contemplation”St. Ignatius notes that “love consists in interchangebetween the two parties; that is to say in the lover’s givingand communicating to the beloved what he has or out ofwhat he has or can; and so, on the contrary, the belovedto the lover.” In the midst of physical pain and theprogression of her cancer, my retreatant heard Jesus askingher to “feed my lambs,” and she desired to respond in lovein whatever way she could.Six months later, at her funeral, the priest spoke of hisvisit with her before she died. She told him she didn’tknow what it would be like to die, but she did know thatGod loved her. She showed him a bookmark I had givenher and with which she had been praying: “Nothing canseparate us from the love of God (Romans 8:38-39).”She chose to be a lover by knowing she was loved. by Diane NevilleDiane Neville is a wife, mother,spiritual director and volunteer. Shereceived her spiritual direction trainingat Manresa and was commissioned in2005. She served as Manresa’s Directorof Women’s Ministry from 2013 to 2015.1.2.3.Buckley, SJ, Michael J. (1975)“The Contemplation to AttainLove.” The Way Supplement,Vol. 24 (Spring)Gray, SJ, Howard; GeorgetownUniversity. (2012, November 6), “Dynamics of the SpiritualExercises Lecture 10: Contemplation to Attain DivineLove.”Gilda’s Club is a support group for cancer patients and theirloved ones.Editor’s note: If you are interested in making the Spiritual Exercises, contact Ann Dillon at adillon@manresa-sj.org or 248.644.4933 Ext. 107.Page5

Finding New Life Along the CaminoMost of us know that life is a journey—always—and that it can be revelatory if we keep our eyesopen along the way. It is a journey that can belife-giving to ourselves and others if we accept as gift allthat is handed to us and return as gift all that we can.A few months ago, I embarked on a pilgrim’s journey,155 km of the Camino de Santiago, with my friendMaria and 43 others, most of whomwere seasoned hikers. That experienceturned out to be reminiscent of my ownlife’s journey and was in some ways aresurrection from a bit of darkness Icarried with me and had offered to Godat the beginning of the trip.The seven-day trek through the mountainsand hills of northern Spain was bothrevealing and difficult. Each day broughtits own particular pain and pleasure; both,especially the pain, disclosed the presenceof the Holy One and brought about aninner awakening and awareness of Hishand in everything.On the day prior to our last day of hiking, we emergedfrom a long uphill track and came to a forest whose treesformed a canopy over a long, winding path. It felt as if wewere entering a beautiful cathedral, and the soft sway of theleaves seemed to quietly whisper: “This is Holy Ground.”In that moment it felt as if some of the darkness residingwithin me was dissipating and that I was being bathed inthe warmth of Holy Light. Basking in this awesomeness,I found myself giving thanks for all ofit and everything. Then I heard it, thedulcet tones of sweet music waftingthrough the air. I thought I wasimagining things until we came to aclearing where a young man was sittingon a mound of dirt playing his flute(with his hat in the road waiting fordonations). What a wonderful gift!On the seventh and last day of walking,we finally reached Santiago. It was along, arduous journey, but it was worththe time and pain. It was a journeymuch like my life-journey when I’vetrodden into situations about which Iknew little or nothing and did not knowTheCaminoleadspilgrimstotheshrineofthewhat I needed to know. Some of thoseThe first day of the trek was, for me,Apostle St. James, located in the Cathedral of roads/paths have been rocky, filled withthe most difficult. The rough terrain,Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain.treacherous holes I couldn’t see. Somehigh altitude and cold rain wereofthemhavebeenfairlysmooth and inviting, offeringunexpected challenges, especially for the two of us whoopportunities and gifts. Several of those paths were litteredwere unseasoned hikers and ladies of a “certain age.” At awith smelly dung, and a few of them I managed to avoidpoint during the day, feeling fatigued, exhausted and spent,(others, not so much). There were even times when II wondered (and asked) why God had brought me on thisparticular journey and if it would end for me right then and wondered why I was placed in that space and time andquestioned my reason for being. But the many resultingthere. As I stood at the base of a large hill before tryinggifts of life have been worth the journey. Throughoutto climb, a young biker approached, pushing his bike. Heboth journeys there has been a discernible Presence alwaysstopped and, looking at me compassionately, asked if heresponding to me, even carrying me when I could no longercould push me up the hill on his bike. I declined his offer,walk on my own.but he was insistent; he then asked if he could help me upthe hill, an offer I also declined. I imagine he was thinkingThe Camino trek was a wake-up call to me, God’s reminderI might die there on that trail. He finally asked if he couldthat “we’ve been here before; I will not forsake you.”give me a hug, an offer I accepted. It was a life-giving giftBecause I can see that I am so greatly blessed and becausethat gave me the strength to finish the climb. It felt as if II know I am gifted with a love that can sustain me forever,had been ministered to by an angel of light.a love that creates and allows me to be a part of an ongoingcreation, I hope and pray I can and will be an instrumentOver the seven days, we walked, trekked and even trudgedfor bringing new life to others in some way as they traveldown narrow mountain paths, up slippery slopes, alongtheir many paths.curving treacherous rocky roads and highways, through by DiAnne Patterson Schultzbeautiful forests, farmland and quaint villages. Weclimbed up and down hills and walked along many pathsDiAnne is a 2003 graduate of Manresa’s InternshipProgram, a trained spiritual director, has led peoplestrewn with animal waste—lots of it. Yet the sites, thethrough the Spiritual Exercises and facilitated retreats,smells, the kiss of the rain and mist, the sound of the treesspiritual workshops and days of reflection. She servesmoving in sync with the wind, the sound of stillness andas an ESL tutor at All Saints Literacy Center inextended conversations with the Lord were—all of them—southwest Detroit and is a parishioner of Detroit’sGesu Catholic Church.unadulterated beauty.Page6Editor’s note: For more photos and reflections from DiAnne, see the E-supplement at www.manresa-sj.org/publications.

In Him Was LifeBy His incarnation and resurrection Christ offers us newlife—divine life and eternal life.John and Sarah Crossan’s recent book, ResurrectingEaster: How the West Lost and the East Kept theOriginal Easter Version, illustrates two differentvisualizations of the Easter event.The typical image of the Resurrection in WesternChristianity is of Christ emerging alone from a tombor sarcophagus; the only other humans present are thesleeping guards. This image is not used by EasternChristianity because the Gospels do not mention ordescribe this physical aspect of the Resurrection.POur Lady of the Sign (15th century),a fresco in the Cathedral of Cordoba, Spain.aintings of the Annunciation typically portray Maryreading, and her text is understood to be Isaiah 7:14,“The Lord Himself will give you a sign: behold,a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call hisname Immanuel.” The text gave rise to the icon of OurLady of the Sign—Mary with her hands raised in prayer,and on her breast the infant Jesus within a roundaureole. It depicts the moment when Mary says,“Be it done unto me according to Your word” andsimultaneously Christ is conceived in her womb.The Eastern icon of the Resurrection (in Greek Anastasis)portrays Christ in the abode of the dead where the justpeople who died before Christ wait for His grace toopen to them the gates of Heaven. There He tramplespersonified Death underfoot with all his locks and chains,shackles and prison doors. He takes hold of Adam andEve, symbolic of the whole of humanity, and pulls themout of their graves, sharing His resurrection with themand so with us. Western Christianity depicts an individualresurrection, Eastern Christianity a universal resurrection.There is but one resurrection, that of Christ, in whichwe are given a share. “God raised us up with Christ andseated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus”(Ephesians 2:6). “Since, then, you have been raised withChrist, set your hearts on things above” (Colossians 3:1).The equivalent image in the Cordoba Cathedral isdifferent; not only is Jesus not confined within asymbolic womb, but rays of light radiate outwardfrom Him in all directions. These rays form a kindof halo, a sign of holiness, an attribute primarily ofGod and then of those who are one with Him.But at the moment of the Incarnation these rayscarry a deeper meaning. New life has begun notjust for Jesus, but for all of us as well. WhenGod becomes human, He supplants AdamAnastasis (ca. 1316-21),as the head of our race. Now, the life thata fresco in the Church of the Holy Savior of Chora (now the Kariye Museum), Istanbul.flows from the head to the rest of the bodyis not just life tainted by original sin, but aThese two mysteries, the Annunciation and Easter, whichshare in Christ’s divine life. “Where sin abounded, graceabounded all the more” (Romans 5:20). The power ofwe celebrate this year on March 25 and April 12, obtainChrist’s incarnation reaches out from Him to every partnew life for us—divine life by Christ’s incarnation, eternalof creation, bringing all things under His headship andlife by His resurrection.bringing new life, divine life, to us. God has become by Peter Fennessy, SJhuman so that humans may become divine.Page7

From Death to New LifeA Glorious ResurrectionDGFortunately, around that time, I attended an eight-daysilent retreat where I was introduced to Ignatius ofLoyola. I came to know Jesus more intimately throughIgnatian contemplation. My resurrection slowlyblossomed by attending Manresa’s mini-courses inIgnatian Spirituality, where the idea of applying for theInternship in Spiritual Companionship began to grow.Not that those ideas were wrong, but they had become“limiting” in my desire to know God more fully. And,yes, at times this relinquishing almost felt like heresy, asthough I might lose myself completely in the process;and in some ways, I guess I did. It was an internal dyingprocess . . .ead. My career was dead. My husband was dead.And my heart was dead. In fact, I felt as if I hadbeen relegated to a tomb.I had worked as a family practice physician for almost 30years. After my husband’s death, I moved near GrandRapids, MI to work at a federal healthcare center. I lastedonly two years. “Burned out” is inadequate to describemy state at that time. “Burned to a crisp” would be moreappropriate. It was with a great sense of vocational failurethat my career in healing had ended.What I had always found most rewarding about thepractice of medicine was the privilege of listening to otherpeople’s stories and accompanying them through theirjoys and sorrows. I always believed that healing happensmore through relationship than through pills, potions orprescriptions. For that reason, I thought that spiritualcompanionship would be a good fit for me, and I wasencouraged to apply to the Internship by my spiritualdirector and many friends who knew me well.rowing up as a Protestant preacher’s kid, I wassteeped in the religious teachings of my faith butalways sensed there was more to God than anyone denomination or religious doctrine could contain.The Internship in Spiritual Companionship at Manresainvited me to consider new ways of thinking aboutGod, prayer, love and listening. As I did, little by little,something within me began to open as I relinquishedsome deeply ingrained ways of believing that had shapedmy identity and understanding of Christianity for years.ef“. . . something withinme began to open . . .”efef“I always believed that healinghappens more through relationship . . .”efOh, but what a glorious resurrection followed! It waslike waking up, seeing with new eyes, hearing withnew ears and living out of a much truer identity thanever before—an identity defined by Divine Love. TheInternship taught me ways to be more present to thisDivine Love through the grace of imaginative prayer andother spiritual practices. I also began to trust my ownexperience with God through the process of discernmentand surrender. This continual process of “relinquishmentand resurrection” has been key to my ongoingtransformation in Christ.Perhaps God has transformed my dead medical careerinto a new way of accompanying others. Of that I’m notquite sure. But I do know that through the InternshipGod has brought new life to me, transforming me intosomeone much more open to Hisways. by Angela AmbrosiaI would highly recommend the Internship because, ifentered into with an open and humble heart, you WILLBE awakened, challenged and reborn into a deep andprecious intimacy with Christ Jesusthat will impact every visible andinvisible aspect of your life.Although I was anxious to be of service again, I alsoapplied to the Internship for selfish reasons. It was a lotof fun! I enjoyed the seminars on Ignatian Spiritualityso much that I wanted to continue. It was a pleasure tobe around such good people, both those directing theInternship and those attending it. The faith-sharing andsoul-stretching have given me new life and new hope.Angela Ambrosia recently moved to Lansing, MI.She will graduate from Manresa’s Internshipin May 2020. Besides being a team member ofREFLECT, which offers retreats for mid-lifesingle adults, Angela says she is making herselfavailable to God and looking forward to how Hewill use her listening skills in a future ministry.Page8The Internship was one of the most freeing, gracefilled and life-giving journeys I’ve ever experiencedand influences how I engage in the world today. Sincegraduation, God has opened doors for me to teach andshare what I have learned among pastors and ministryleaders within my own denomination. I can honestly saythat the seeds planted during the Internship are bearingfruit in ways I could never imagine. by Vicki Thomas-TeedVicki Thomas-Teed graduated from Manresa’sInternship in 2017. She is a therapist in the fieldof Neuropsychology and works with pastors andministry leaders in spiritual wellness throughteaching, sacred listening and spiritual direction.Editor’s note: For more information about Manresa’s Internship in Spiritual Companionship visit www.manresa-sj.org/internship-home/.

The Empty Tomb Imagined in MusicOOn Easter Sunday 1725 in Leipzig, Saxony, JohannSebastian Bach (1685-1750) introduced a cantata(a choral piece with orchestral accompaniment)about the resurrection of Jesus. He had adapted it from thesecular Shepherd Cantata, attributed to Christian FriedrichHenrici (pen name “Picander”). Bach later revised thiscantata into a more meditative work, the Easter Oratorio,to better express the human emotional responses to theResurrection. The portrayal is notably Ignatian in itsimaginative treatment of a Scriptural event: how the twoMarys, Peter and John share in discovering the empty tomb.In the fourth section of the oratorio, the two Marys rebukePeter and John for not bringing anointing oils for the Body;the men reply that they were prepared to anoint Jesus withtheir tears. The scene unfolds as the four by turns react withregret, anticipation, wonderment, assurance, consolation,eagerness and joy, culminating in triumph. For all thesereactions of the heart, the poem also appeals to the head,anchoring the reader in terra firma: “Here is the grave / andhere the stone that covered it” and offering physical evidence:“Here I delight to see / the head cloth lying unwound.”aThis representationof the opentomb can beseen fromthe 15thStation ofthe Cross onManresa’scampus.With its interplay of music and lyrics, the aria in theseventh section “Easy my death shall be . . . ” was praised bymusician and theologian Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965) as“one of the most beautiful sacred lullabies that Bach everwrote. We seem to be gazing in a dream over a gentlymoving sea, towards the fields of eternity.” I invite you,Dear Reader, to use your imagination and reflect on themasterpiece that follows. by Paul SeiboldbBach’s Easter Oratorio , BWV 249 (translated from the original German by Paul Seibold)1, 2 - Sinfoniettac3 - Chorus, Peter & JohnCome, hurry and run, you flying feet,Get to the hollow that covers Jesus!Laughing and gladnessAccompanies the hearts,For our Savior is awakened.4 - R

Apr 01, 2020 · Cultural Center. Refreshments are available at 5:30 PM, followed by a fabulous dinner and speaker, Super Silent . ome 500 years ago St. Ignatius gifted the Church . Keller McGaffey graduated from Manres